Automatic virtual phone number pool management

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus include computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium for dynamic contact information assignment. A method includes: identifying a pool of telephone numbers; assigning the telephone numbers to a pool manager; allocating by the pool manager, subsets of the telephone numbers to a plurality of allocators, each allocator responsible for allocating telephone numbers to an associated group of content sponsors; determining a first allocation of a first subset, the first allocation being distributed among the content sponsors associated with a first allocator, creating first pools each associated with a respective one of the content sponsors associated with the first allocator; reclaiming one or more telephone numbers from a pool of the first pools; and assigning ones of the reclaimed telephone numbers by the first allocator into either other pools of the first pools or back to the pool manager for allocation to other allocators.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method, comprising:
 receiving, by one or more computers, multiple different requests for content to be displayed at different client devices; 
 for each particular request from each particular client device, identifying content to presented at the particular client device based on the particular request; 
 for a first request among the different requests:
 selecting, by the one or more computers, a first telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; 
 assigning, by the one or more computers, the first telephone number to a first click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; and 
 tracking, by the one or more computers, interaction with the first click to call control; 
 
 for a second request among the different requests:
 selecting, by the one or more computers, a second telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular device that submitted the second request; 
 assigning, by the one or more computers, the second telephone number to a second click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the second request; and 
 tracking, by the one or more computers, interaction with the second click to call control; and 
 
 generating and outputting a report indicating i) how many calls to each of the first telephone number were generated by interaction with the first click to call control ii) how many calls to the second telephone number were generated by interaction with the second click to call control and iii) results from calls generated by interaction with each of the first click to call control and the second click to call control. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating an association between an identifier of the particular client device that performed the interaction, the first telephone number to the designated entity when the interaction with the first click to call control occurred that is maintained for a predetermined period of time after the interaction is detected. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 2 , further comprising routing a subsequent call to the first telephone number placed from the particular client device before the end of the predetermined period of time to the designated entity. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 3 , further comprising reassigning the first telephone number to a different entity based on a determined change in forecasted traffic for one or both of the designated entity or the different entity. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 4 , wherein the first telephone number was allocated to the designated entity from a pool of numbers that were available to be assigned to the designated entity. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the interaction is a click or a tap on the first click to call control. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 6 , wherein the client device is a mobile device or a digital assistant device. 
     
     
       8. A system comprising:
 one or more processors; and 
 one or more memory elements including instructions that when executed cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
 receiving multiple different requests for content to be displayed at different client devices; 
 for each particular request from each particular client device, identifying content to presented at the particular client device based on the particular request; 
 for a first request among the different requests:
 selecting a first telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; 
 assigning the first telephone number to a first click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; and 
 tracking interaction with the first click to call control; 
 
 for a second request among the different requests:
 selecting a second telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular device that submitted the second request; 
 assigning the second telephone number to a second click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the second request; and 
 
 tracking interaction with the second click to call control; and 
 generating and outputting a report indicating i) how many calls to each of the first telephone number were generated by interaction with the first click to call control ii) how many calls to the second telephone number were generated by interaction with the second click to call control and iii) results from calls generated by interaction with each of the first click to call control and the second click to call control. 
 
 
     
     
       9. The system of  claim 8 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising generating an association between an identifier of the particular client device that performed the interaction, the first telephone number to the designated entity when the interaction with the first click to call control occurred that is maintained for a predetermined period of time after the interaction is detected. 
     
     
       10. The system of  claim 9 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising routing a subsequent call to the first telephone number placed from the particular client device before the end of the predetermined period of time to the designated entity. 
     
     
       11. The system of  claim 10 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising reassigning the first telephone number to a different entity based on a determined change in forecasted traffic for one or both of the designated entity or the different entity. 
     
     
       12. The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first telephone number was allocated to the designated entity from a pool of numbers that were available to be assigned to the designated entity. 
     
     
       13. The system of  claim 12 , wherein the interaction is a click or a tap on the first click to call control. 
     
     
       14. The system of  claim 13 , wherein the client device is a mobile device or a digital assistant device. 
     
     
       15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processor to perform operations comprising:
 receiving multiple different requests for content to be displayed at different client devices; 
 for each particular request from each particular client device, identifying content to presented at the particular client device based on the particular request; 
 for a first request among the different requests:
 selecting a first telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; 
 assigning the first telephone number to a first click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the first request; and 
 tracking interaction with the first click to call control; 
 
 for a second request among the different requests:
 selecting a second telephone number to a designated entity based at least in part on the content to be displayed at the particular device that submitted the second request; 
 assigning the second telephone number to a second click to call control included in the content to be displayed at the particular client device that submitted the second request; and 
 
 tracking interaction with the second click to call control; and 
 generating and outputting a report indicating i) how many calls to each of the first telephone number were generated by interaction with the first click to call control ii) how many calls to the second telephone number were generated by interaction with the second click to call control and iii) results from calls generated by interaction with each of the first click to call control and the second click to call control. 
 
     
     
       16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of  claim 15 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising generating an association between an identifier of the particular client device that performed the interaction, the first telephone number to the designated entity when the interaction with the first click to call control occurred that is maintained for a predetermined period of time after the interaction is detected. 
     
     
       17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of  claim 16 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising routing a subsequent call to the first telephone number placed from the particular client device before the end of the predetermined period of time to the designated entity. 
     
     
       18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of  claim 17 , wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to perform operations further comprising reassigning the first telephone number to a different entity based on a determined change in forecasted traffic for one or both of the designated entity or the different entity. 
     
     
       19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of  claim 18 , wherein the first telephone number was allocated to the designated entity from a pool of numbers that were available to be assigned to the designated entity. 
     
     
       20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of  claim 19 , wherein the interaction is a click or a tap on the first click to call control.